CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. (WJAC) — She's 32 years old, a mother of three and if all goes according to plan: an Olympic hopeful.
Johnstown native, Kristal Bodenschatz, is putting her leotard back on for one last shot at her dream to compete at the Olympics.
"I don't know how, I don't know how I get up every morning and work this hard," said Bodenschatz, catching her breath during her morning workout.
Training at her family's gym in Johnstown, Uzelac Gymnastics, with her two sons in tow, is a typical day for Bodenschatz. Her mother Brenda and brother Donnie Uzelac stand by to begin coaching.
"Around 3, I could do my back handsprings and stuff so I think it was always in me to do gymnastics," said Bodenschatz.
Bodenschatz grew up at Turner's, the gym her mother coached at in Johnstown. She described her and her siblings and gym rats, always being at the gym from the time they were born. But Kristal struck with the sport once she became older.
"I think they noticed a little something special in me I guess with picking things up a little faster than others. I could do roundoff ten back handsprings when I was five," said Bodenschatz.
That something special caught the eye of Parkettes National Gymnastics Training Center in Allentown. At 8 years old, Kristal left Johnstown to take her training to the next level.
For a year, it was just Bodenschatz and her mother in Allentown while she trained. The rest of the family joined them shortly after.
Bodenschatz trained up to 40 hours every week, and that training paid off. She became a three-time Junior National Champion.
"I was very proud of her all the time. She did have a lot of people - big fans, she was always on top but it was exciting to see people asking for her autograph things like that," said Brenda Uzelac.
But the sport began to take a toll on Kristal. Every time her Olympic dreams came closer to becoming a reality, sudden injuries got in the way.
"I just got burned out. I just wanted to go to the Olympics so bad that was my dream and that just didn't happen. I've been so down on myself for years," said Bodenschatz.
After retiring to compete at the elite level, Bodenschatz got a full ride to Pennsylvania State University for gymnastics. She competed on the school's team briefly before getting a concussion and deciding to drop out of college. Bodenschatz then went to coach at her family's gym.
Bodenschatz said it took her a while to even like gymnastics again and that she hated the sport, and didn't even watch the Olympics that year.
Now, 12 years after hanging up her leotard, she's making a comeback.
"To be a part of it, it means a lot. She asked me and my mom at the beginning, 'Will you be there to help me, push me when i need pushed,'" said Donnie Uzelac.
The goal is for Bodenschatz to compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. But she's taking it day by day, going back to the basics and training her body to handle to strain.
"I'm always tiny and I've always had arm muscles...but I have 3 kids and I haven't used my stomach in I don't know how long," said Bodenschatz.
After resenting the sport for years, she's learning to love it again and says she's the happiest she has been in years.
And if the Olympic dream slips by again, she's OK with it. She said she's believing in herself now, the word "Believe" can be seen in rhinestones on her leotard that she sells to support her journey.
"Getting myself here today is a big accomplishment. I want to just keep having fun and show everyone that you don't have to beat your body up to be an Olympic athlete. You have to work hard but you're allowed to have fun at an elite level," said Bodenschatz.
Bodenschatz said her favorite part about her journey so far is the messages she's received online from people saying they inspired her. She wants people to know that they should never give up on their dreams.
Her next meet is in June, which would bring her one step closer to her dream.
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